Tuesday, Sep. 6, 2011
SIAULIAI, Lithuania — Juan Carlos Navarro scored 22 points as defending champion Spain swept aside host Lithuania 91-79 on Sunday to advance to the second round of the European basketball championship.
France, Serbia, Germany, Russia and Slovenia also clinched berths in the second round.
France rallied with a big fourth quarter despite playing without San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker to defeat Italy 91-84, an outcome that allowed Serbia and Germany to advance even before their later match.
Serbia, which lost the final to Spain two years ago, joined France on a perfect 4-0 record in Group B by overcoming 25 points from NBA Finals MVP Dirk Nowitzki to beat Germany 75-64. Germany is 2-2.
In a major upset in Group A, Poland beat world championship silver medalist Turkey 84-83, leaving Turkey on the brink of elimination. Turkey must beat Spain in its last match.